Thread: Prone to ingrowns

I have been enjoying my first partial shaves with the straight, and while I have no strop, I am finding the newspaper is doing the trick for now.

Because I have bumps from ingrowns, I have had to avoid those areas with the SE and just use the M-3 around those areas while they heal.

I'm wondering if anyone else out there who is prone to ingrowns has used anything that has worked at preventing them?? I have seen many types of salves and balms advertised, but because I am presently trying something called "bump eraser" to no avail, I am suspicious of trying something else that probably won't work.

I've heard it's these multi blade cartridge razors that gave me the bumps in the first place, but is it solely the fault of those razors? Or is a combination of my skin type, my technique AND the multiblade?

Is there actually something out there that can heal and prevent them from coming back? It's quite irritating, especially when I have a few on the chin growing at once.

I'm wondering if investing in a DE would be a good idea to hit those areas I can't get to with the straight because of the bumps. Because I figure contiuning to shave around those bumps with a multi, might just make me go into a perpetual ingrown hair bump cycle? I can't remember the last time I had a completely clear face without ingrown hair damage. It's been at least two years. I actually got a syringe that I use solely for "freeing" the hair from under the skin. Beats the old method of scratching the layers of skin off until the hair popped up.

I hear you! I had the same problem, and whilst I still get the occasional bump now, they are much much better than they used to be.

I found that the modern multi blade razors made my bumps much worse, as does shaving against the grain.

I got a DE Merkur initially and started shaving only WTG and that all but got rid of them. They come back occasionally now, usually towards the end of the week as I shave every day for work.

Now I shave with a mix of WTG and XTG strokes daily and I hardly ever have a problem now.

The situation improved again when I got my first straight.

I've found the excellent soaps and creams straight users habitually use, combined with the single blade only have drastically improved my bumps.

So yes, I think a DE would be better than a Mach 3 for your problem areas so try one and see what you think!

I terms of products to treat bumps you could try this stuff:

Ingrown hair treatment, ingrowing hair advice - ingrown hair solutions UK

I found that Trumpers skin food helps as well.

Let us know how you get on!

Ingrown hairs are a byproduct of and caused by the modern day multiblade safety razor and some electrics.

The engineering behind these new multibladed razors is a great example of one size fits all. They are engineered with the assumption that if all faces, and legs, aren't the same, then we must produce a product that makes them that way.

The blade holder is made so that its frame, when pushed down on the skin, forms a flat and relatively tight surface for the blades to work on. Thus, no matter how your face is configured, thier blade will work.

The next thing are those multiple blades. All of them are not designed to cut. Just the last one cuts. The rest are in place, and at an angle designed to grab and pull the hair out, until the last one cuts it. What happens next is what causes the ingrown hair!

After the last blade cuts the hair, the hair is released and allowed to pop back into the hole it came out of. In some cases the hole tries to grow shut and the hair keeps trying to grow. Thus the ingrown hair.

Some electrics do the same thing but in a different way.

If you are getting ingrown hairs after using a SE razor, you can almost be assured it is not caused by the razor. If anything, you are shaving to close, and you might be prone to ingrowns. I would think after a while it should clear up considerably and you should see this stop.

Ray

I have found not shaving every day helps a great deal. I really wish i could shave every day, but my skin and hair just dont allow it. Try an every other day if possible.

Contrary to popular opinion, some people just have sensitive skin no matter what they use to shave. My own skin problems are better from using a straight (I'd like to think, but honestly I can't prove it), but not gone completely. I was trying lots of aftershave balms and facial care products but to little avail. Eventually I stopped using anything but soap (for the shave) and a facial cleanser like Cetaphil for washing my face in the morning/night and the problem again got even better. I now shave as infrequently as I care to and my face likes me for it.

You might want to try this product: http://straightrazorpalace.com/misce...e-dermo-k.html. As with any skin product, "works for me" does not mean it will work for anyone else. But for me, it works very, very well.

There's this product that Rodin reviewed. That looks worth a try, & i intend to.

Apart from that you just have to take what steps you can to prevent them.
The M-3 & the like are awful for it. Really awful, & the straight will help right off the bat.

I get far fewer now, but am still prone, as my stubble grows in absolutely every direction below my mouth & that area. I simply never go for as close as i can there. I shave in the evening, & each morning after a shave, i scrub with Elemis Time for Men. It really is a fantastic scrub & it may work for you.

I have a Merkur DE, & find i'm far more likely to get an ingrown from it than a straight.

I'm also prone to ingrowns, and find that one thing that helps is to "brush" my face with a toothbrush or similar stiff bristle brush before and after a shave.. this helps to dislodge any stubble that gets stuck under the skin...

Originally Posted by rayman

Ingrown hairs are a byproduct of and caused by the modern day multiblade safety razor and some electrics.

The engineering behind these new multibladed razors is a great example of one size fits all. They are engineered with the assumption that if all faces, and legs, aren't the same, then we must produce a product that makes them that way.

The blade holder is made so that its frame, when pushed down on the skin, forms a flat and relatively tight surface for the blades to work on. Thus, no matter how your face is configured, thier blade will work.

The next thing are those multiple blades. All of them are not designed to cut. Just the last one cuts. The rest are in place, and at an angle designed to grab and pull the hair out, until the last one cuts it. What happens next is what causes the ingrown hair!

After the last blade cuts the hair, the hair is released and allowed to pop back into the hole it came out of. In some cases the hole tries to grow shut and the hair keeps trying to grow. Thus the ingrown hair.


Ray

That's what I had heard as well. And we've probably all seen the graphic adverts that show the first or second blades doing the lifting while the last does the cutting, but I wish there was an actual video (instead of company propaganda) that actually shows the blades doing this to the hair, because I find the mechanics of it all, hard to believe. (ie, the 1st and 2nd blades "lifting the hair")
I'm a skeptic, what can I say? I just think those blades damage the skin so much, because I am not only prone to ingrowns, but those multi blades cut me frequently. I have had a styptic pen long before I even started reading about straight razors. What I'm not a skeptic about: multi blades are crap! Period.

Originally Posted by IsaacRN

I have found not shaving every day helps a great deal. I really wish i could shave every day, but my skin and hair just dont allow it. Try an every other day if possible.

I was afraid someone was gonna say that! lol. But, it's most likely true. Sad, but true. I need to lay off the daily shaving. Which was fine by me when I was using multi blades, but it's funny how a tedious daily routine, becomes "fun" with a new and let's face it (haha, "let's face it") a gorgeously made tool, like a SE.